WARNING my Avdeco Plasma TV stand EXPLODED (Pictures)

Free · 08-20-06, 10:55 AM

This is a warning about the Avdeco line of plasma and TV stands.

Last fall I purchased an Avedeco HR420 TV stand for my bedroom. This stand runs about $1000, so it is definately not cheap. One of the reasons I chose this stand was that the top shelf had a "stated" capacity of 250lbs. Since I was putting my Panasonic 50PX500U Plasma on it, I wanted to make sure it was solid. Since the Panny was only 114lbs, I figured I had plenty of support for it.

All was fine for many months, and then, just last month, I happened to be sitting in the next room, when I heard a tremendous crash. I thought that a plane had hit my house, and I ran into my bedroom to see what happened.

The top shelf of the Avdeco stand EXPLODED sending shards of glass to every corner of my bedroom. Fortunately for me, I wasn't sleeping at the time, or I would have been hit by flying glass.

Amazingly, my plasma tv, fell straight down, and was resting precariously on the next two shelves. I quickly called my wife in to help me lift it off and to the ground. It is really a miracle that the plasma didn't fall over on its face.

For the last several weeks, I have been calling and e-mailing Avdeco Inc, and the online dealer Threshold Concepts, but have recieved no response, either via e-mail or phone call. It is obvious that both the dealer, and the manufacturer is not interested in any repeat business, or taking care of the customer. I am left with a useless tv stand and am out $1000.

Anyone considering purchasing one of these stands, even a different model, I would strongly caution you to consider a different manufacturer.

martyj19 · 08-20-06, 11:09 AM

If they are ignoring you for several weeks, undoubtedly you will need assistance from the legal system to make good.

The company website does not provide any useful contact information.

This is the Whois data for the domain.

AVDECO, INC.
3550 Wilshire Blvd. #736
Los Angeles, CA 90010
US

Domain name: AVDECOINC.COM

Administrative Contact:
Choo, Chong paul@cosmomediagroup.com
3550 Wilshire Blvd. #736
Los Angeles, CA 90010
US
213-386-2519 Fax: 213-386-3597

HDTV-NUT · 08-20-06, 11:25 AM

Damn man, sorry to hear that. Glad nobody in your family was hurt and glad your plasma was fine.

I would definitly be going after these guys. File complaints, go in to the store in which you bought it and talk to the manager.

HDTV-NUT · 08-20-06, 11:28 AM

What about your amp on the top left of the picture. Im sure glass got into the little air vents. Man I would be pissed.

markrubin · 08-20-06, 11:33 AM

You need to submit a claim in writing

is all your gear OK?

maybe you should consider wall mounting the plasma

billybob_jcv · 08-20-06, 11:34 AM

Holy cr@p! That is the ugly side of a glass top stand. Tempered glass doesn't crack - by design it fragments when it's compromised. I've seen similar results from a glass coffee table that had a heavy bookend dropped on it. If the mfr doesn't respond to you they are a serious low-life company. I think I'd do the same thing you're doing - make the story known far and wide on the 'net. A letter from a law firm might get a response, but you'd eat up that $1000 pretty fast. Wow...

IamAnoobieCheez · 08-20-06, 11:36 AM

When the TV fell straight down didn't it damage those receivers? Is your TV okay? Hope there wasn't enough shock to damage the TV.. No spots for cracks? Sorry to hear about what happened..

Rickw2 · 08-20-06, 12:12 PM

Free,

Glad you (and your plasma) weren't hurt!

Have you considered calling or emailing your local TV News shows? There are plenty of consumer reporters here in NY that love going after deadbeat retailers and manufacturers, maybe you have some in your neck of the woods.

Rick

howe · 08-20-06, 01:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by martyj19

If they are ignoring you for several weeks, undoubtedly you will need assistance from the legal system to make good.

The company website does not provide any useful contact information.

This is the Whois data for the domain.

AVDECO, INC.
3550 Wilshire Blvd. #736
Los Angeles, CA 90010
US

Domain name: AVDECOINC.COM

Administrative Contact:
Choo, Chong paul@cosmomediagroup.com
3550 Wilshire Blvd. #736
Los Angeles, CA 90010
US
213-386-2519 Fax: 213-386-3597

Wow! I am so glad I didn't opt for glass. I use a Salamander which is hardwood and extruded aluminum. I'd trust that with a 65" set, no problem. Also, it costs about $750 (basic configuration w/o doors and such) delivered and can fit at least 6 components underneath.

Just for the record, was your stand manufactured in China? Such goods are notorious for defects, cutting corners, misrepresenting specifications, poor quality control, etc.

Thanks for sharing this experience! Amazing your Panasonic survived!

Free · 08-20-06, 01:34 PM

Thanks for the thoughts guy's. My experience is that the legal process, would not be worth the hassle, and I am getting satisfaction knowing that others won't make the same mistake as I did, from my post here.

I did get EXTREMELY lucky. I just happened to be home that day, in the next room, and was able to rescue the plasma, as it was dangling precariously on top of the two middle shelf components. There was no damage, not even a scratch to the plasma.

The Amp did get glass in it, and I had to take it apart, and vacuum out the innards. It still works fine.

So, this shows the perils of not only glass, but ordering from an online dealer as well.

petmic10 · 08-20-06, 01:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Free

Thanks for the thoughts guy's. My experience is that the legal process, would not be worth the hassle, and I am getting satisfaction knowing that others won't make the same mistake as I did, from my post here.

I did get EXTREMELY lucky. I just happened to be home that day, in the next room, and was able to rescue the plasma, as it was dangling precariously on top of the two middle shelf components. There was no damage, not even a scratch to the plasma.

The Amp did get glass in it, and I had to take it apart, and vacuum out the innards. It still works fine.

So, this shows the perils of not only glass, but ordering from an online dealer as well.

Sorry for your troubles.

Look at the bright side, you and your wife weren't hurt and your plasma could
have been destroyed too.

Free · 08-20-06, 02:00 PM

I just posted a review over at Audioreview.

old64mb · 08-20-06, 02:02 PM

I'm glad you're ok.

I use an older wood TV console stand for precisely these reasons...tempered glass always has scared the heck out of me.

Best of luck, hope you nail these guys.

Cleveland Plasma · 08-20-06, 02:51 PM

Wow. Glad all is well for the most part.

2muchtime · 08-20-06, 03:41 PM

That is strange.
It looks like 3/8 tempered glass. I think you could get a piece @ a glass shop cut to size for about $100.00. Or a piece of furniture grade wood veneer would work also.

I truly hope they stand behind their product, if not under it.

Hothersale · 08-20-06, 04:12 PM

Tempered glass CAN be defective. I heard a news story on the radio the other day about people who had experienced "exploding" glass-top patio furniture. These pieces of furniture didn't even have anything heavy on them -- just heating up and cooling down over the course of the day was enough to cause them to spontaneously shatter!

HK1Fan · 08-20-06, 08:37 PM

If you charged it, contact your charge card company and tell them you are having a warrantee dispute with the seller. Have them retract the payment. I bet you will get a returned phone call PDQ.

Fred

HDTV-NUT · 08-20-06, 08:52 PM

Sent the story in to HDbeat.

http://hdbeat.com/

Oliver Deplace · 08-20-06, 09:16 PM

Thanks for the warning about Adveco.

I'm glad it didn't take anything with it.

Having seen the way glass fails, it has always given me the "willys" when it's used as the only means of supporting a heavy object. After reading this thread, there's no way I'd buy a glass TV stand. I mean, that's downright scary. It's, IMHO, a safety issue. I look at those photos and think, "What if there was a child sitting in front of the TV?".

I suggest a wood replacement. May not be as aesthetically pleasing, but if it fails it won't explode and spray the room.

billybob_jcv · 08-20-06, 10:32 PM

Hey Free - someone Dugg your story!
http://digg.com/hardware/Plasma_TV_stand_EXPLODED

Free · 08-21-06, 12:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HDTV-NUT

Sent the story in to HDbeat.

http://hdbeat.com/

Wow! Thanks, That is pretty cool.

PFC5 · 08-21-06, 04:00 AM

Free thanks for the headsup! Glad no one got hurt too.

Did you see the prior post about having the charge canceled by your credit card company if you charged it? You have something like 4 years to dispute a charge, but if you have pictures you could email/fax to the CC company that will reverse the charge immediately I am fairly confident.

Good luck!

Free · 08-21-06, 08:49 AM

I will definately look into that. I didn't realize that I had that long. I thought it was 3 months.

iraweiss · 08-21-06, 01:00 PM

This should also be reported to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

rustman · 08-21-06, 01:22 PM

Free - Thanks for posting this. I'm grateful no one in your family was hurt.

The vendor could make this right for $1000 or so. I can't believe they would not respond to you and risk hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages by having your story posted on hundreds A/V sites on the web. Unbelievable.

I would also email this to Consumer Reports.

Wendek · 08-21-06, 01:53 PM

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission http://www.cpsc.gov/

laststarfighter · 08-21-06, 02:19 PM

Neomoon · 08-21-06, 03:12 PM

I first saw this topic discussed on HDBeat's page yesterday (my home page) and it turns out this topic has made it as the number one topic on the digg.com page when I surfed by thier site just now.

Glad to hear both your family and your plasma are ok. Hopefully this has generated enough publicity to get your stand replaced.

kraemer · 08-21-06, 03:28 PM

While I am extremely sympathetic towards your plight, I cant understand why you would put a plasma, or anything even remotely heavy on what is essentially a glass table. No matter what its rated, any sort of collision or dropped object can trigger a shatter when its under a heavy load. Glass+heavy objects=bad idea.

oo7tushar · 08-21-06, 03:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kraemer

While I am extremely sympathetic towards your plight, I cant understand why you would put a plasma, or anything even remotely heavy on what is essentially a glass table. No matter what its rated, any sort of collision or dropped object can trigger a shatter when its under a heavy load. Glass+heavy objects=bad idea.

It appears that the glass was rated to accept the plasma screen so it appears the manufacturer is at fault for a bad product and/or incorrect rating.

08-20-06, 10:55 AM	#1 \| Link	<a href='http://rev.avsforum.com/phpAdsNew/adclick.php?n=a4ac4393' target='_blank'><img src='http://rev.avsforum.com/phpAdsNew/adview.php?what=zone:30&n=a4ac4393' border='0' alt=''></a>
Free Advanced Mumbler AVS CLUB MEMBER Join Date: Nov 1999 Location: Sunny Arizona Posts: 4,767	WARNING my Avdeco Plasma TV stand EXPLODED (Pictures) This is a warning about the Avdeco line of plasma and TV stands. Last fall I purchased an Avedeco HR420 TV stand for my bedroom. This stand runs about $1000, so it is definately not cheap. One of the reasons I chose this stand was that the top shelf had a "stated" capacity of 250lbs. Since I was putting my Panasonic 50PX500U Plasma on it, I wanted to make sure it was solid. Since the Panny was only 114lbs, I figured I had plenty of support for it. All was fine for many months, and then, just last month, I happened to be sitting in the next room, when I heard a tremendous crash. I thought that a plane had hit my house, and I ran into my bedroom to see what happened. The top shelf of the Avdeco stand EXPLODED sending shards of glass to every corner of my bedroom. Fortunately for me, I wasn't sleeping at the time, or I would have been hit by flying glass. Amazingly, my plasma tv, fell straight down, and was resting precariously on the next two shelves. I quickly called my wife in to help me lift it off and to the ground. It is really a miracle that the plasma didn't fall over on its face. For the last several weeks, I have been calling and e-mailing Avdeco Inc, and the online dealer Threshold Concepts, but have recieved no response, either via e-mail or phone call. It is obvious that both the dealer, and the manufacturer is not interested in any repeat business, or taking care of the customer. I am left with a useless tv stand and am out $1000. Anyone considering purchasing one of these stands, even a different model, I would strongly caution you to consider a different manufacturer. __________________ Phil Last edited by Free; 08-22-06 at 08:40 PM..

08-20-06, 11:25 AM	#3 \| Link
HDTV-NUT AVS Special Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: NJ/NYC Posts: 1,824	Damn man, sorry to hear that. Glad nobody in your family was hurt and glad your plasma was fine. I would definitly be going after these guys. File complaints, go in to the store in which you bought it and talk to the manager. __________________ PSN: JAY-NUCLEAR

08-20-06, 11:28 AM	#4 \| Link
HDTV-NUT AVS Special Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: NJ/NYC Posts: 1,824	What about your amp on the top left of the picture. Im sure glass got into the little air vents. Man I would be pissed. __________________ PSN: JAY-NUCLEAR

08-20-06, 11:33 AM	#5 \| Link	<a href='http://rev.avsforum.com/phpAdsNew/adclick.php?n=a591f81a' target='_blank'><img src='http://rev.avsforum.com/phpAdsNew/adview.php?what=zone:36&n=a591f81a' border='0' alt=''></a>
markrubin Volunteer Moderator AVS GOLD CLUB MEMBER Join Date: May 2001 Location: Jersey Shore Posts: 17,388 Classified Rating: 100% (4)	You need to submit a claim in writing is all your gear OK? maybe you should consider wall mounting the plasma __________________ click to clean your monitor Display Forum Rules (no price talk) Please take the High Road in every post

08-20-06, 11:34 AM	#6 \| Link
billybob_jcv Doh! Join Date: May 2005 Location: Just past the Oediv-Oidua nebula Posts: 2,539	Holy cr@p! That is the ugly side of a glass top stand. Tempered glass doesn't crack - by design it fragments when it's compromised. I've seen similar results from a glass coffee table that had a heavy bookend dropped on it. If the mfr doesn't respond to you they are a serious low-life company. I think I'd do the same thing you're doing - make the story known far and wide on the 'net. A letter from a law firm might get a response, but you'd eat up that $1000 pretty fast. Wow... __________________ If you think this post was dumb, you really should read my blog=> http://bumpedhishead.blogspot.com/

08-20-06, 11:09 AM	#2 \| Link
martyj19 AVS Special Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Posts: 2,531	If they are ignoring you for several weeks, undoubtedly you will need assistance from the legal system to make good. The company website does not provide any useful contact information. This is the Whois data for the domain. AVDECO, INC. 3550 Wilshire Blvd. #736 Los Angeles, CA 90010 US Domain name: AVDECOINC.COM Administrative Contact: Choo, Chong paul@cosmomediagroup.com 3550 Wilshire Blvd. #736 Los Angeles, CA 90010 US 213-386-2519 Fax: 213-386-3597

08-20-06, 11:36 AM	#7 \| Link
IamAnoobieCheez spaceman Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: I come from a distant space where no one has gone before. The temperature is aight. The planet has a purple sky tho and the gravity is slightly less than that of earth. Oh yeah I got plenty air..... Posts: 2,251	When the TV fell straight down didn't it damage those receivers? Is your TV okay? Hope there wasn't enough shock to damage the TV.. No spots for cracks? Sorry to hear about what happened.. __________________ *HTPC* Panny 7UY & 9UK Pics TH50PHD7UY - Hours Used: 6361

08-20-06, 12:12 PM	#8 \| Link
Rickw2 Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: New York City Posts: 169	Free, Glad you (and your plasma) weren't hurt! Have you considered calling or emailing your local TV News shows? There are plenty of consumer reporters here in NY that love going after deadbeat retailers and manufacturers, maybe you have some in your neck of the woods. Rick

08-20-06, 01:34 PM	#10 \| Link	<a href='http://rev.avsforum.com/phpAdsNew/adclick.php?n=a591f81a' target='_blank'><img src='http://rev.avsforum.com/phpAdsNew/adview.php?what=zone:36&n=a591f81a' border='0' alt=''></a>
Free Advanced Mumbler AVS CLUB MEMBER Join Date: Nov 1999 Location: Sunny Arizona Posts: 4,767	Thanks for the thoughts guy's. My experience is that the legal process, would not be worth the hassle, and I am getting satisfaction knowing that others won't make the same mistake as I did, from my post here. I did get EXTREMELY lucky. I just happened to be home that day, in the next room, and was able to rescue the plasma, as it was dangling precariously on top of the two middle shelf components. There was no damage, not even a scratch to the plasma. The Amp did get glass in it, and I had to take it apart, and vacuum out the innards. It still works fine. So, this shows the perils of not only glass, but ordering from an online dealer as well. __________________ Phil

08-20-06, 02:00 PM	#12 \| Link
Free Advanced Mumbler AVS CLUB MEMBER Join Date: Nov 1999 Location: Sunny Arizona Posts: 4,767	I just posted a review over at Audioreview. __________________ Phil

08-20-06, 02:02 PM	#13 \| Link
old64mb Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 356	I'm glad you're ok. I use an older wood TV console stand for precisely these reasons...tempered glass always has scared the heck out of me. Best of luck, hope you nail these guys.

08-20-06, 02:51 PM	#14 \| Link
Cleveland Plasma AVS CLUB MEMBER Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Cleveland, Ohio Posts: 6,434	Wow. Glad all is well for the most part. __________________ President: Chris Majoros Forum Sponsor Cleveland Plasma

08-20-06, 03:41 PM	#15 \| Link	<a href='http://rev.avsforum.com/phpAdsNew/adclick.php?n=a591f81a' target='_blank'><img src='http://rev.avsforum.com/phpAdsNew/adview.php?what=zone:36&n=a591f81a' border='0' alt=''></a>
2muchtime Assistant to SWMBO Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Ohio Posts: 71	That is strange. It looks like 3/8 tempered glass. I think you could get a piece @ a glass shop cut to size for about $100.00. Or a piece of furniture grade wood veneer would work also. I truly hope they stand behind their product, if not under it.

08-20-06, 04:12 PM	#16 \| Link
Hothersale Frisky Dingo! Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Vancouver, BC Posts: 523	Tempered glass CAN be defective. I heard a news story on the radio the other day about people who had experienced "exploding" glass-top patio furniture. These pieces of furniture didn't even have anything heavy on them -- just heating up and cooling down over the course of the day was enough to cause them to spontaneously shatter!

08-20-06, 08:37 PM	#17 \| Link
HK1Fan Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Posts: 56	If you charged it, contact your charge card company and tell them you are having a warrantee dispute with the seller. Have them retract the payment. I bet you will get a returned phone call PDQ. Fred

08-20-06, 08:52 PM	#18 \| Link
HDTV-NUT AVS Special Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: NJ/NYC Posts: 1,824	Sent the story in to HDbeat. http://hdbeat.com/ __________________ PSN: JAY-NUCLEAR

08-20-06, 09:16 PM	#19 \| Link
Oliver Deplace Advanced Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Northern California Posts: 589	Thanks for the warning about Adveco. I'm glad it didn't take anything with it. Having seen the way glass fails, it has always given me the "willys" when it's used as the only means of supporting a heavy object. After reading this thread, there's no way I'd buy a glass TV stand. I mean, that's downright scary. It's, IMHO, a safety issue. I look at those photos and think, "What if there was a child sitting in front of the TV?". I suggest a wood replacement. May not be as aesthetically pleasing, but if it fails it won't explode and spray the room.

08-20-06, 10:32 PM	#20 \| Link
billybob_jcv Doh! Join Date: May 2005 Location: Just past the Oediv-Oidua nebula Posts: 2,539	Hey Free - someone Dugg your story! http://digg.com/hardware/Plasma_TV_stand_EXPLODED __________________ If you think this post was dumb, you really should read my blog=> http://bumpedhishead.blogspot.com/

08-21-06, 04:00 AM	#22 \| Link
PFC5 AVS Special Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 1,459	Free thanks for the headsup! Glad no one got hurt too. Did you see the prior post about having the charge canceled by your credit card company if you charged it? You have something like 4 years to dispute a charge, but if you have pictures you could email/fax to the CC company that will reverse the charge immediately I am fairly confident. Good luck! __________________ Had to move my HT gear list to my profile so click below link to see it: HT Gear list HERE

08-21-06, 08:49 AM	#23 \| Link
Free Advanced Mumbler AVS CLUB MEMBER Join Date: Nov 1999 Location: Sunny Arizona Posts: 4,767	I will definately look into that. I didn't realize that I had that long. I thought it was 3 months. __________________ Phil

08-21-06, 01:00 PM	#24 \| Link
iraweiss Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Ohio Posts: 244	This should also be reported to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

08-21-06, 01:22 PM	#25 \| Link
rustman Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Brambleton, VA Posts: 65	Free - Thanks for posting this. I'm grateful no one in your family was hurt. The vendor could make this right for $1000 or so. I can't believe they would not respond to you and risk hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages by having your story posted on hundreds A/V sites on the web. Unbelievable. I would also email this to Consumer Reports.

08-21-06, 01:53 PM	#26 \| Link
Wendek Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: SF Far East Bay Posts: 396	U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission http://www.cpsc.gov/

08-21-06, 02:19 PM	#27 \| Link
laststarfighter sparky extraordinaire Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 575	WoW __________________ LastStarFighter The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese. my gear

08-21-06, 03:12 PM	#28 \| Link
Neomoon Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Houston Posts: 102	I first saw this topic discussed on HDBeat's page yesterday (my home page) and it turns out this topic has made it as the number one topic on the digg.com page when I surfed by thier site just now. Glad to hear both your family and your plasma are ok. Hopefully this has generated enough publicity to get your stand replaced.

08-21-06, 03:28 PM	#29 \| Link
kraemer Member Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: texas Posts: 77	While I am extremely sympathetic towards your plight, I cant understand why you would put a plasma, or anything even remotely heavy on what is essentially a glass table. No matter what its rated, any sort of collision or dropped object can trigger a shatter when its under a heavy load. Glass+heavy objects=bad idea.